Broken
by HimeAir
Summary: "The world is a horrid place, Sonic, you know that first hand... and they care nothing for their hero, so why should you care for them?" - Short AU
1. Caged

Just a quick something swirling in my mind lately... if you haven't guessed I somehow like making Sonic the bad guy hehe - I think he has the real potential to go that way, if something pushed him enough, and I think he'd be pretty devestating.

So another AU, I think thats what they are called... I'm not sure if I'm going to go anywhere with it, but its going to be a short one, and I already have the next/last chapter in mind and started so we'll see how this goes. I'm not supposed to be writing this either, I'm supposed to be working on something for a guildmate... opps.

* * *

The room was dark, and cold, the only place he could feel remotely comfortable coming from the old, spring bed with an even older innerspring mattress, with some of the springs broken through the lining and fabric, leaving him a very small amount of room to lay, and sometimes he even opted to sleep on the cold floor, in case a spring broke in the night, or what he assumed was night. The only thing that ever happened that was remotely interesting was when he was taken from the cell, by a group of five, or sometimes more, guards into a large room where their leader would attempt to "break him." It never worked, he was strong enough not to let stupid tricks of the mind and abuse break him, make him into some blubbering mess that would do what ever he was told... though sometimes it was more than tempting, sometimes he was ever so tempted to give in, that maybe all those promises he offered weren't – No! He couldn't think that way. His stomach have an uncomfortable growl as he rolled over, skilfully dogging the springs in a way that marked just how long he had been trapped here. He wasn't sure the last time they fed him, but he clearly remembered the last time he saw food. Piles of it, sitting inches in front of him, all his if he just gave in, and the pain almost became too much right there, but he stayed strong, he had to. They'd be coming to rescue him any day, any moment, and he wasn't about to become his ultimate weapon when they arrived. _"What if they don't come?... what if they don't care about me, like I care for them? If it was anyone of them, I would have rescued them by now, and saved the day."_

He gave his head a rough shake, he hated that voice, that voice of doubt, he couldn't doubt, if he doubted, then he gave in.

"_Giving in wouldn't be so bad. I'd be full at least, maybe a comfortable bed, with a blanket... and I wouldn't have to worry about everyone else anymore, see how they'd fare without me..."_

"They've been relying on you for a long time, haven't they Sonic?"

He glanced up, his emerald green eyes blinded by the bright light of the room for a moment, when had they moved him? Was he so trapped in his own mind that he didn't even realise?

"I – I don't mind that they do."

The face of the albino echidna was cold, and the smile was unsettling.

"You cant lie to me – you're lying to yourself. They _expect_ you to jump up and save the day, so much they don't even try anymore."

"They – Shadow tries..."

"Does he? Does he really? He only does it to sate his own conscious. Only does it because Maria wanted him to. But when it comes down to it, he just as easily steps aside and waits for you."

He gave a shudder, was that really true?

"Do you know why they haven't come for you? Because they expect you'll break yourself out. They haven't even tried... I can show you, if you want."

Screens around him sparked to life, each showing the same, empty, corridor that led to his cell, each with different time stamps and dates, with no sign of anyone.

"I knew they wouldn't come, that's why I left you unguarded like that. They don't care for _you, _Sonic. Only your power, and fame."

"..."

"They use you, Sonic the Hedgehog."

"They – _Th-ey_ – You want to use me too."

The echidna gave a low chuckle;

"No, I see you as my equal. You have powers that you couldn't even imagine. I'll help you retrieve them... and in return I ask that you help my organisation here, you would not work for me, we would work together. The world is a horrid place, Sonic, you know that first hand... and they care nothing for their hero, so why should you care for them?"

"_They – I _– I shouldn't..."

The echidna's smile grew larger, and almost manic.

"So, do we have a deal, my friend?"

Sonic closed his eyes for a moment, too many thoughts and feelings overwhelming his system, was it a lie? Was it true? Did it even matter? Slowly he let his eyes slide open again, the emerald traced with specks of jade.

"... Deal."


	2. Rescue?

So, slight change of plans, I think there are going to be a couple more chapters. Things didn't work out as I expected as I typed it out. - I'd like to say a HUGE big thanks to all the faves, and reviews, makes me feel all warm inside!

_More notes at the end of the chapter._

* * *

The fortress was cold and foreboding, even the weather seemed to what to avert it, leaving it an odd muggy mix of warm and cold, the sky dark as if there were clouds even though there were none. Three days, three days it had taken him to find this place, three days they had kept his _big brother_ locked inside. His yellow-orange twin tails with white tips shuddered out for a moment at the thought of what they might be doing to him before a large hand on his shoulder caused him to look up into the amethyst eyes of a bright red echidna, with a small trace of fear in his eyes;

"Don't worry, kid. He's Sonic, he'll be fine. He has more luck than any guy I know."

He tried to smile, show that he had taken what he had said to heart, but all he could muster was a look as if he had a stomach cramp.

"Are you still sure you want to come?"

"I need to."

The echidna bent down, allowing the young fox kit to climb up, so he could carry him down the side of the cliff face. They would move faster like this, and much less easy to spot by the mixture of Mobain guards dressed in black that patrolled the area. The plan was simple, if a flawed one; get in, find Sonic, and get out and by Chaos hope that they haven't had the time to do anything to him yet. So many flaws, so many moments that they could get caught in, but the normally over analytical, not willing to go forward with any plan unless it was almost fool proof Tails didn't particularly care; he just wanted his brother back. So when he and Knuckles were able to enter the fortress without any kind of resistance, with the "luck" of every patrol stopping a few feet away from their hiding spot simply turning and walking away, he knew something was terribly wrong.

"Knuckles, I don't like this – there is no way they don't know we're here."

"I agree, at first I thought they just couldn't smell, or had bad hearing, but now... It's like they want us to get in."

Tails' stomach gave an uncomfortable flip, climbing its way up into his throat; that would mean they already did something to Sonic. That the mad Doctor Finitevus had already attempted, and perhaps succeeded, in using what ever chemicals and abuse to break him.

"Tails?"

He gave his head a rough shake;

"Sorry, did you say something?"'

"Not that I don't think I'm capable of this on my own; but maybe we should come back with some reinforcements."

"No, we're here and if... _and if..._"

The red echidna turned to face down the corridor;

"Ok, I understand... There is no point us being discrete then, is there?"

* * *

Confused? Sonic seems to think he's been captured for months but we find out from Tails it's only been three days... the plot thickens! hehe


	3. Have Faith

Ok, so here is the next part - again **HUGE** thank yous to those of you that have reviewed, and faved and all that good stuff - I dont think I'd be finishing this if it wasnt for you all :D - So, right now the plan is to have the next chapter as the last, so enjoy this part!... oh, and by the way, I suck at writing Knuckles...

* * *

Perhaps the chaos enhanced chemicals had worked better than he thought. While they had little effect on his body, besides enhancing his hunger and exhaustion, they seemed to have had a profound effect on his mind, creating a state of almost psychosis. The most noticeable effect of which was that he seemed to believe he had been captured for up to six months, instead of three days and now had perhaps fake memories of fighting with his friends before his capture. Wether they were just delusions or not might have been irrelevant if he had not of stormed the place on his own, fuming and being more careless than normal leading to his capture. He gave a low sigh as the watched the cobalt blue hedgehog run the obstacle course; it would take a lot of effort to maintain these delusions, one slip up and all his hard work could be lost.

"Doctor, sorry to disturb you..."

He slowly turned his attention away from the course to the hooded Mobain next to him, it was hard to distinguish one from another, and quite frankly, he didn't really care;

"What is it?"

"The fox and the Guardian have entered the building, Doctor."

"Yes, I expected they wouldn't be far off..." His face turned to a twisted smile; "Let them have a little fun, then bring them to the main control room, we'll be waiting."

It took a few moments for the sirens to start blaring, but even still the guards that patrolled did nothing as the two Mobain's ran down the corridors, Knuckles hitting anything within range with his knuckled fists, smashing most things into thousands of pieces without any kind of effort, while Tails released tiny robots that crawled their way into small spaces in the vents or cracks in the floors and walls before exploding in clouds of multicoloured smoke, overloading any near by communications and electronic devices and cables, even causing some of the Mobain's that had limbs replaced with robotic ones to double over in pain. The hallways were almost like tunnels in an underground maze, with no windows and large stone doors lining them, some exploding open as Tails' robots squeezed under them. It made the whole situation even more unsettling, not knowing what might be behind that next door that that strange feeling of foreboding due to not being able to see the sky. The plan had always been to check where they kept prisoners first, but finding it had not been easy without any kind of maps, or even schematics that Tails could tap into. Once they eventually found their way there, Tails' heart sank, finding the rooms, upon rooms of small, dirty and cramped cells completely empty.

"Why isn't he here?"

Knuckles snapped his head around to face the young fox kit, not used to hearing such an outburst from the normally calm and controlled boy;

"Maybe they moved him somewhere else? Looking at these things I doubt he would have had any trouble breaking out."

Tails' face became downcast; "... What if they did something to him? What – What if he..."  
Knuckles placed his hand on Tails' shoulder a little uncomfortably, this whole big brotherly caring thing wasn't his place of expertise, or any kind of comforting at all.

"You cant think like that, ok? You've gotta have faith that he's fine, and he will be..."

Tails gave a loud sniff and rubbed his nose;

"Ok..."

Knuckles gave a slightly smug smile for a moment, this comforting thing wasn't that hard, before the cell block door blasted open, and hooded Mobain's started to poor in, blocking most of the light, and the only way out.


	4. The Truth    Part One

So, this is only really short... I've felt kinda bad that if left this hanging longer than I'd of liked so this is a little something to hopefully keep those of you that are following the story interested as I'm not sure when I'll get around to finishing it. It **will** be finished, I just haven't been able to get into the mindset I need to, to complete this. So, heres hoping this can tide you over.

* * *

Tails knew instantly as he was pushed inside that the large, cold steel room was a control room of some kind, but didn't have a moment to assess it before he was pushed to the ground, Knuckles not long after him, their bound arms and legs making it near impossible to get back up again.

"I am normally more civilised to house guests, but when you break into my home and start destroying everything in site..."

Tails moved his head around to be able to look at the albino echidna, rather than the chemically treated steel floor, a very uncharacteristic growl escaping him;

"Where is he?"

The Doctor blinked at the outrightedness of the fox kit for a moment, before stepping sideways with a very unsettling smile on his face, revealing a tall, and lean cobalt hedgehog, who stood with his arms crossed over his chest, feet covered in red and white shoes tapping impatiently.

"Sonic...!"

Tails nearly choked on his name, over come with the fact that he looked perfectly fine.

"Finally showed up, did you?"

Tails visibly jumped at the tone of voice Sonic used, it was one he was completely unfamiliar with.

"It wasn't exactly easy to find this place, blue boy!"

Knuckles quickly quipped back, his anger getting the better of him as it normally would with the blue hedgehog.

"Of course it was; if you were looking for it, Knucklehead."

"That's a nice way to treat people when they've come to rescue you."

Sonic's eyes narrowed;

"I'm not stupid – you just came here because Miles needed something or another... or that Eggman is trying to destroy the world again. Get someone else to clean up the mess for a change, I'm done."

"_Miles... you never call me Miles..."_

"What do you mean; you're done? You're just gonna' sit on the sidelines and watch? Thats not like you."

"I'm not going to 'sit on the sidelines' at all. It's time I had some fun, show that fat idiot, and the rest of you, how its really done."

Knuckles' eyes widened;

"You cant be serious..."

"Of course, Sonic the Hedgehog, Mr. Happy go Lucky, always playing around even in the heat of battle, never takes things seriously." Sonic turned to the echidna beside him; "Can we get this over with now?"

The echidna's cruel smile grew larger; "But of course, would you like them to remain tied?"

"Nah, I need at least a little challenge."


	5. The Truth Part Two

So...as soon as I said I didnt know when I was going to get this finished, here it is! heh... This isnt the direction I was going to go with, but this is just how it ended up, I hope it lives up to expectations, but somehow I dont think it will...ah well...

* * *

As soon as his bonds were untied and he stood to join the already standing Knuckles it was like a bomb going off; the sound of the sonic-boom echoing across the steel walls and floors, and then Tails felt what he could only describe was like being caught in a tornado, not only his fur but his skin being ripped back and forth by the wind that was being created, his eyes forced to close due to how much they were watering. The only other sound he could hear was grunts coming from all around him every now and then. A cold shiver made its way down his back as he heard a small laugh, and before he could react, there was a burning feeling in his stomach, before he was pushed back a few feet, falling to the floor. The same sensation then hit him in the back, then the stomach once more, one of his tails; that quickly went snap causing him to yell out in pain, only to feel a soft linen glove cover his mouth, the tornado stopping; someone's breath next to his ear causing it to twitch;

"I expected more from you, Miles; you're not even going to defend yourself? Let alone fight back?"

Sonic slowly moved his hand away for Tails to give his reply, and as he opened his mouth he tasted something sweet and metallic;

"I cant fight my big brother..."

* * *

Sonic pulled his arm back, his hand curled in a fist, if Tails wasn't going to fight back, he'd put him out of his misery... misery he caused. His arm started to shake, as his eyes truly opened to what he had just done, he glanced up for only a second to see Knuckles lying in a heap not to far away, blood pooling from open wounds just caused from Sonic's fists and feet alone, not even a twitch of movement, or his chest moving up and down when he breathed... if he was breathing. Tails was somehow worse; blood pouring from his mouth from those stomach shots he had done; one of his twin tails lay out in an odd direction, broken when he had stepped on it... and for an instant it wasn't the young pre-teen fox that lay under him; but a kid, a young kid, without his parents, shunned from the world because of his twin tailed gift. A kid that looked up at a younger version of himself, those bright sky blue eyes sparkling in awe as he sat in a red bi-plane.

"_Oh shit... T-Tails..._ What – What have I done?"

His hand uncurled and he quickly scooped the fox into his arms; Tails' breathing was irregular, and pained... and the blood was only getting ever worse, but the fox still smiled;

"...You're back..."

"Tails – I – Oh god... I..."

He pulled Tails close into his chest, a shuddering breath came from his little brother before he breathed his last words;

"Its ok... I forgive you."

Sonic closed his eyes as he placed the too small body of the child he had killed;

"But I can forgive myself..."

* * *

Doctor Finitevus' cruel smile turned into snarl as all the work he had done had suddenly gone to waste at the sight of a dying fox, but even with his anger, he still took a startled step back as the cobalt blue hedgehog's eyes snapped open at him, however the emerald green iris' were gone, instead only the whites remained and the room grew an unnatural cold...


End file.
